"...Fine. As long as she checks in when she gets there. And when she leaves."
"Of course. I'll be there in ten."
Ragon ends the call and sets the phone down with more force than necessary.
He looks at me then, really looks at me.
"Stay in contact. Text when you arrive. Don't wander off. If anything feels wrong, you call. You tell me immediately if Alex makes even the tiniest wrong move."
"I will," I promise.
He nods once, turning back to his paperwork, but the tension in his shoulders doesn't ease.
I linger in the doorway a second longer.
Then I leave, the weight of his concern following me down the hall.
Alex's car is already waiting when I step outside, sleek and dark.
He gets out to open the passenger door before I can protest. The gesture catches me off guard—not dramatic, not performative. Just polite. Considerate.
"Hey. Ready?"
I nod and climb in, tucking my bag at my feet.
The door closes with a soft sound, sealing me into an interior that smells like leather and faint cedar. It's clean. Warm. There's a subtle undertone beneath it—something sharper, something distinctly him—muted by blockers but not erased.
It settles over me like a blanket.
Alex pulls away smoothly, one hand on the wheel, the other resting along the center console. His forearm lies close enough to mine that I can feel the heat of his body.
He doesn't touch me.
He doesn't need to.
"So," he says lightly, glancing at me. "Gym day."
"Yeah. I almost didn't make it."
"Ragon sounded like he was wrestling a bear internally," Alex says with a grin.
I huff a laugh before I can stop myself. "That sounds about right."
Conversation flows easier than I expect. He asks about my class, about what I like and don't like. He listens—really listens—in a way that doesn't feel evaluative.
My shoulders loosen.
My breathing evens out.
Somewhere along the drive, I realize I'm relaxed.
The thought startles me enough that I shift in my seat. My instincts aren't flaring. I'm not bracing. I'm not measuring every word.
I glance at Alex's arm again, thick and close and warm, and feel an unexpected ache bloom in my chest.
I wonder what he smells like without blockers.
The thought slips in uninvited and lingers longer than it should.
